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It’s no secret that I adore stickers and washi tapes. I used to try and use as little of them as possible because I didn’t want them to run out so fast.

This year, though, that all changed. I met my fellow #artitas who are as addicted to washi tapes and stickers as I am and met a lot of planner-loving friends who even use planner stickers specifically made for planners. 🙂 Inspired by them, I vowed to make this year the year that I’d use my hoarded stuff to make each day happier and more fun. I also discovered how some of my old stickers lost their “stickiness” which means that I better use these babies up. And fast.

I used to have a rule that confined my sticker usage to my daily gratitude planner (take a peek into my planners in my instagram: @mabuhaydiy) but I scrapped that rule because seeing cute stickers everywhere makes me so happy. 🙂

For my gratitude planner, I highlight a memorable happy thing that day using brush lettering and then list down other faves from that day. I use washi tapes and stickers to fill up spaces:

Sometimes I use the stickers or stamps as bullets:

A tip I learned from my planner-loving friends: Decorate a page or a spread in the future with washi and stickers and then just jot down notes on said page/s when that day arrives to save you time on decorating. I do it sometimes when I have plans or events.

For my “anything goes journal/planner” (which is basically filled with bigger illustrations and detailed descriptions of food I ate lol), I use the stickers/stamps/washi tapes for borders and for sticking ephemera or food labels:

I also do brush calligraphy of quotes in my journals and doodle or paint food.

My good friend Ella uses her stickers for decorating her gadgets and walls and project life scrapbook, so you can also consider those as additional use of the stickers and tapes you’ve hoarded, haha.

You can buy these stickers, washi tapes (loving the foil ones!) and stamps from my new fave online store: @beehappycrafts (They have so many artsy craftsy stuff there–you can easily lose precious hours just from ogling their sticker options :)). The stickers, foil tapes and washi tapes I used in the photos above are all from beehappycrafts loot btw. 🙂

P.s. I just had to take more photos of my haul. Can’t get over how pretty the stickers and foil tapes are! Also getting addicted to clear stamps, heh. Thank you for existing and making this sticker fiend very happy, beehappycrafts! 🙂

I love reading and making lists and I especially love artsycraftsy wip posts. I felt so inspired after going through several tagged blogs. 🙂
Thanks to Ria for tagging me!

What are you working on?
A lot! I have a list of personal projects that I plan on tackling after work or over the weekend. But my attention span is super short and I’m a scanner, so I’m bound to start something then stop halfway when something shinier appears. It’s in my nature, so I have accepted this about myself. On the upside, I do tend to accomplish a lot when the art/craft bug attacks in the middle of the night, haha. I always update my instagram with recent projects, but here are the extra memorable ones:

Experimenting with masking fluid. I suck at calligraphy but thought this might change my mind. This is a line from Conchitina Cruz’s poem “What is it about tenderness”.

Books are piling up on my TBR pile and I can’t be more excited. I have this dream of having a reading nook and I’m planning to swankify a small area near the window for this. Maybe I’ll rearrange furniture or add some fluffy pillows.

I hope the above drawing looks like Aubrey Plaza. It’s my first time to draw a portrait using colored pencils and I’m not sure if I like it. I felt a lot of anxiety that I’d ruin her beautiful face so maybe I’ll just draw imaginary ladies next time. I’m not sure if I have the guts to finish this eep.

How does your work differ from others?
I find it easier to make stuff filled with things I love, so in my works you’d probably see ladies, cats, ladies with cats, fangirling, an unhealthy amount of color, book/film/movie/tv show-inspired stuff. Cats!

Why do you create what you do?
They give me a happy. -Buffy
I feel more relaxed and zen when I create. I’m not fond of making drafts using pencil mostly because I like surprising myself hehe.

How does your creating process work?
I find nuggets of inspiration from my fave things, and then I try to coax/wrangle something out of them. Sometimes the results please me, sometimes they’re epic failures–but at least I got to learn from them. It’s all good. 🙂

This is the first time I tried to paint roses under ten minutes. I have never painted using a youtube vid, so this is a first as well! Unlike other vids where the artist tells us about the materials and the steps for the painting, Trevor Waugh’s vid jumps right in, and paints within 8 minutes. I made a quick mix of pink using my waterbrush and tried to catch up with him as he painted. I love his technique, and by the time the vid was finished, I was finished as well.

I’m afraid of painting flowers since I tried it several times and I wasn’t that pleased with the results. But this vid changed my mind, I actually enjoyed the quick process!

Have you been to Deovir? It’s heaven for me there! Shelves filled with arts and crafts materials, mostly from brands for pros, and a lot of them pique my curiosity.

I’ve been to all branches, but I’d have to say my fave would be the Sm North one, followed by the Megamall one because of the staff who patiently assisted me when I pestered them with my questions about the purpose of the items that interest me.

Alas I had to budget my monies so I couldn’t buy everything, but I settled for these (for the meantime hehe):

I’ve been playing with them and I’m in love! I’ll definitely be saving up to buy more colors. 🙂

Happy New Year! 2013 has been the most wonderful year, and I firmly believe that 2014 will be an even better year for all of us. 2013 was named “The Year of Magic and Wonder” and it was filled with so many blessings and surprises because of the awesomeness of the Universe. For 2014, I shall name it as “The Year for Great Things” to call forth good vibes and positivity. I realized that vagueness means more surprises, and I’m a fan of happy surprises, so there you go. Hello 2014!

I ended 2013 doing some crafts, like jazzing up colored pencils from Almi (thank you, Almi!) with colored nail polish, and making rubbercut stamps.

For the colored pencils, I used metallic and neon colors and I really like how they turned out:

I made a couple stamp (for Kate’s birthday), my first time to try making a portrait stamp. Quite challenging (I accidentally cut off Kate’s mole since it was so tiny, heh) but definitely exciting. I also made a grumpy cat stamp because I love her. I’m adding “Meet and cuddle Tardar Sauce” to my bucket list this 2014 *crosses fingers*. I used gold stamp pad ink for both:

I’ve always wanted to try and challenge myself with a 365 project but I know that my attention span is ridiculously short, but maybe I can change that this year! I have created for myself this #Create365 project, where I make art/craft/write/sing each day, and then maybe I’ll share it in my Instagram account (@aphazia) for fun.

With all that optimism and hope simmering inside me, I made this before I slept:

At my lola’s house, I made this fashion illustration:

I enjoyed playing with my forgotten Prang set so much that I made another one. Then I taught my younger cousin how to make papercuttings and we played with watercolors and salt and made galaxies.:

Here’s to another year filled with potential and boundless possibilities. I already have exciting plans which involves ticking off multiple items from my bucket list. My stomach is filled with an army of hopeful butterflies and I can’t be happier!

I’m happy to say that I was able to accomplish most of them! Except for “Work with glass”, which I hope I get to try on 2014. 🙂

Here are artsycraftsy items I was also able to experience, items from a grand bucket list.
2013 has been such a generous, wonderful year, and my happiness and gratefulness bucket brimmeth over as well:

My friends and I have been talking about this cool app called PixaRolllately, the “photo kiosk” in your phone.

If you’re addicted to Instagram like me (I currently have more than 1000 photos within a year!), you probably reached a point where you wished you could print your fave IG photos instantly too. Think of PixaRoll as a photo genie, making your photo-printing wishes come true! You can also print not only Instagram photos, but also other photos you have stored in your phone–read more about it here.

Have I also mentioned that there’s a huge possibility of cheaper prints when there are more likes in the PixaRoll PH facebook page? Let’s all work together and spread the word so we can make this happen! Think of all the artsycraftsy possibilities when you get your prints: scrapbook pages, visual diaries, travel journals, home decor, even makeshift cards and postcards! I can already envision creating a handmade album for the printed photos and giving it as a Christmas gift to the people I love. Instant tangible memories! I’m multi-tasking and selecting photos that I want printed as I type this entry. Haha 🙂

Can’t wait to get my prints–stay tuned for more artsycraftsy ideas on how you can use the PixaRoll prints!

Mabuhay!

Hi! I'm Drea Dela Cruz, an artist/crafter from Manila, Philippines.

I love trying new things related to arts and crafts and experimenting with various materials.

I started this blog because I wanted to share my love for the DIY movement--I believe everyone has that artistic side that makes them unique and special and I support encouraging fellow makers. Keep on making things!

Aside from arts and crafts, I also enjoy reading books and magazines, playing with stray cats, traveling, and eating. I'd love to share my artsy-craftsy adventures and journey with you here!

If you wanna get in touch with me, kindly email: mabuhaydiy@gmail.com.